Use Claude3 To Understand Your Home Owners Association

What's an HOA?

An HOA is a Home Owner's Association—often a collective set of rules of the neighborhood you're moving into that maintain the property value for those participating and protect the investments for a monthly or quarterly fee paid to the association. If you don't cut your grass, leave a car parked too long in the driveway without wheels on it, paint your house the wrong color—you could be liable for fees to the association.

What are the rules?

Do you feel like you need a law degree to understand your home owner's association contract when you buy a new house? You're not alone—but fear not there are tools out there to help you understand the contracts, rules, and regulations to make the most out of your investment. You could call a lawyer or real estate agent and pay them handsomely for their advice—or try to parse the document yourself and spend hours searching for the small details you need to get that new deck or hot tub approved that you wanted to build. We'll go with a different approach.

Claude3 to the rescue

We wanted to use an AI model from Anthropic and put it to test called "Claude3" the latest model from the company. It has a large token limit allowing you to upload an entire contract—the model will have the ability to pull in context from the document and allow you to ask plain english questions about it. We won't bore you with uploading the entire 32 page document here but rather give you the insights that we pulled and show you examples of how you could use it yourself next time you're in the swamp dealing with the HOA in your neighborhood.

Let's get started

Human: Can we put up a fence around our property?

Claude: Yes, fences are allowed around property lots in Pacific Sunset, with some restrictions according to Section 4.15 of the CC&R document:

• Fences or boundary hedges cannot be installed or replaced without prior written approval from the Architectural Review Committee (ARC).

• Fences installed in the front yard or on side lot lines forward of the building line cannot exceed 4 feet in height.

• Fences installed on the remainder of the lot cannot exceed 6 feet in height.

• Approved fencing materials include wood "good neighbor" style fences.

• Any fence facing a street must meet design criteria established by the ARC.

So property owners can install fencing with ARC approval, though height and materials are restricted, especially for front yard/side yard fencing visible from the street. Owners would need to submit a fencing plan to the ARC and get written consent before installing. Let me know if you have any other questions!

Not bad! This was pretty easy to find actually but it took us a long while and 20 pages in before we found the clause around fences. Let's go with a harder one.

I want a Hot Tub, babe

Human: Can we have a deck and hot tub in the backyard?

Claude: Yes, you can have a deck and hot tub in your backyard, subject to some requirements in the CC&Rs:

1. Architectural Review Committee Approval (Sections 4.2 and 6.1):

   • You must submit plans for the deck and hot tub to the ARC for approval before starting construction

   • Plans should show the location, size, materials, colors of the deck and hot tub

   • The ARC will review factors like harmony with existing structures, topography, etc.

2. Deck Requirements (Section 4.2.11):

   • Deck design must be shown on the house plans submitted to the ARC

   • Decks and stairs must be the same color as the house trim or body

   • Decks over 4 feet high with no living space below may require screening at ARC discretion

3. Hot Tub Considerations:

   • While not specifically addressed, a hot tub would likely fall under the "structures" provisions

   • So ARC approval of location, size, screening would be required

   • Drainage, electrical, and safety requirements would likely apply

4. Setbacks and Easements (Section 4.2.4):

   • The deck and hot tub would need to comply with the standard setback requirements for structures

   • For most lots that's 5 feet from rear and side property lines

   • They can't encroach on any easements or common areas

So in summary - you can have a deck and hot tub, but will need to get your specific plans approved by the ARC first to ensure they meet all applicable design, setback, and installation requirements. If you do that, you should be good to go! Let me know if any other questions come up.

We'll need approval from an "Architectural Review Committee" if we want a Hot Tub—what if they don't respond to us in time?

What if we don't hear anything back?

Human: What happens if they don't respond to our request within 30 days?

Claude: If the Architectural Review Committee (ARC) does not respond to your request within 30 days, your application would be deemed approved according to Section 6.5 of the CC&Rs. Here's what that section states:

"The ARC shall render its written decision approving or denying each application submitted to it within twenty (20) working days after its receipt of all materials required with respect to such application. If the ARC fails to render such written decision within thirty (30) days of its receipt of all required materials or request an extension, the application shall be deemed approved."

So the process works like this:

1. You submit your complete application with all required materials to the ARC.

2. The ARC has 20 working days to render a written decision approving or denying the application.

3. If the ARC does not render a decision within 30 calendar days of receiving all required materials, and they have not requested an extension, then your application is automatically deemed approved.

4. The ARC can request an extension of time to make a decision, but that extension cannot exceed an additional 30 days. If they still don't render a decision within the extension period, your application would be deemed approved.

So if you have submitted a complete application and the ARC is unresponsive, after 30 days you can proceed as if your application is approved. However, it's always best to try to get a written approval if possible for your records.

If you're nearing the 30 day mark without a response, I would recommend following up with the ARC via email and phone to check the status before assuming approval. But if they remain unresponsive, you do have that automatic approval fallback in the CC&Rs.

Let me know if you have any other questions!

What would you ask about your own HOA?

We were pleasantly surprised at how well this performed on such a long document that we uploaded. 32 pages that we didn't need to read word for word and have to understand, remember, and recite back when needed to our HOA. We'd love to help you do the same with your own HOA or other long documents that you need help understanding. Our team can help you—contact us today.